McIlroy won his first major at age 22 at the U.S. Open in 2011, setting a record score of 16-under-par on his way to an eight-stroke victory. The following year he won the 2012 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island by a record eight strokes for his second major title. Two years later, he won the final two majors in 2014. With his victory at the Open Championship in July, McIlroy became the first European to win three different majors, and joined Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as one of three to win three majors by the age of 25. Three weeks later, he won his second PGA Championship for his fourth major title.

He had a successful amateur career, topping the World Amateur Golf Ranking for one week as a 17-year-old in 2007. Later that year he turned professional and soon established himself on the European Tour. He had his first win on the European Tour in 2009, and on the PGA Tour in 2010. In 2011 at the age of 22, he became the youngest player ever to reach €10 million in career earnings on the European Tour. In 2012, he became the youngest player to reach $10 million in career earnings on the PGA Tour.

McIlroy has represented Europe, Great Britain & Ireland, and Ireland as both an amateur and a professional. At the Ryder Cup, he played for Europe against the United States in 2010, 2012 and 2014, with Europe winning all three matches. For his individual and team achievements he has twice been named RTÉ Sports Person of the Year, in 2011 and 2014.

McIlroy has been cited as the most exciting young prospect in golf and as having the potential to become one of the highest earners in sports in terms of endorsements.[4][5][6]SportsPro rated him the third-most marketable athlete in the world.[7] In January 2013 he signed a large endorsement deal with Nike, with wide speculation on its terms. As time passed, initial rumours of a 10-year/$250 million accord ratcheted down to a more likely $100 million deal of an undetermined length.[8]

Early life, family, and early golf development[edit]

Born in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland, McIlroy is the only child of Rosie (née McDonald) and Gerry McIlroy. He attended St. Patrick's Primary School[9] and then Sullivan Upper School.[10]

Rory and father Gerry McIlroy in May 2013

He was introduced to golf at an exceptionally young age by his father, who coached him.[4] Gerry McIlroy is a fine golfer himself, who once played at a scratch handicap level.[11] Young Rory McIlroy gave early evidence of his golf potential by hitting a 40-yard drive at the age of two.[12] He asked his father virtually every day to take him to Holywood Golf course. Family lore relates that he received a new golf club as a present, being shown the correct grip by his father, then taking the club to bed with him that night, with his hands holding the club properly. McIlroy joined Holywood Golf Club and became the youngest member at the club. A video on golf technique produced by champion Nick Faldo was his early favourite.[13]

McIlroy's father held down several jobs to earn additional income for his son's golf development. His mother worked extra shifts at the local 3M plant.[14] McIlroy's first significant international victory came in the World Championship for the 9–10 age group bracket at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Miami, Florida.[4][15] He learned his early golf at the Holywood Golf Club, which he still retains as his home course.[16] He became the youngest club member at age seven.[17] He started his early training with Michael Bannon, previously the Golf Professional of Holywood Golf Club, who is also his current coach and dedicated mentor.[14]

Amateur career[edit]

At the age of 15, McIlroy was a member of Europe's winning 2004 Junior Ryder Cup team; the event was held in Ohio.[18] In 2005, McIlroy became the youngest-ever winner of both the West of Ireland Championship and the Irish Close Championship.[19] He retained the West of Ireland Championship in 2006 and followed that up with back-to-back wins at the Irish Close Championship.[20] In August 2006, he won the European Amateur at Biella Golf Club, near Milan, Italy, with the score of 274.[21]

In late 2004, at age 15, he signed a letter of intent to play collegiate golf at East Tennessee State University, but after his wins in 2005, he decided to forgo the golf scholarship and continue to play amateur golf in Europe.[22] McIlroy shot a bogie-free opening round of 3-under-par 68 at the 2007 Open Championship at Carnoustie, his first major championship entry. He shot +5 overall and was the highest finishing amateur, winning the silver medal.[23]

In July 2005, at age 16, McIlroy shot a new competitive course record score of 61 on the Dunluce links of Royal Portrush Golf Club.[24] In October 2006, McIlroy represented Ireland in the Eisenhower Trophy, which is the Amateur World Team Championship. On 6 February 2007, he became the second man to top the World Amateur Golf Ranking, though he lost the top spot after just one week.[25]

McIlroy was part of the Great Britain & Ireland team at the 2007 Walker Cup, held at the Royal County Down Golf Club.[26] On the first day of the event he was paired with Jonathan Caldwell for morning foursomes, and the match was halved. In the afternoon he faced Billy Horschel in singles, but Horschel won 1 up. On the second day McIlroy and Caldwell lost in morning foursomes by the score of 2 & 1. In the afternoon he faced Horschel in singles again, and this time he won by the score of 1 up. McIlroy's overall record was (1–2–1) in Win-Loss-Tie format. The United States came out victorious by a score of 12½ to 11½.[27]

In April 2009, McIlroy made his first Masters Tournament appearance, his first major championship as a professional. He finished the tournament tied for 20th place, two strokes under par for the tournament. Of the players to make the cut, McIlroy achieved the third highest average driving distance, beaten only by Dustin Johnson and Andrés Romero.[45] McIlroy played in two more events on the PGA Tour after the Masters Tournament including his first appearance at The Players Championship, where he missed the cut.[44]

McIlroy finished the 2009 season ranked second on the Race to Dubai, behind Lee Westwood, and in November he entered the top 10 of the world rankings for the first time.[47] McIlroy finished 2009 ranked 9th in the world.[48] In November 2009, McIlroy announced that he would join the American-based PGA Tour for the 2010 season.[49]

In the 2010 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, McIlroy beat Kevin Na 1-up in the first round and then lost on a playoff hole to Oliver Wilson. After the Accenture Match Play Championship, McIlroy took time off from golf due to a sore back.[52] After a two-week break McIlroy returned in the 2010 Honda Classic and finished in a tie for 40th.[44]

On 2 May, McIlroy recorded his first PGA Tour win after shooting 62 in the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship. The round set a new course record, and concluded with six consecutive scores of three.[53] He became the first player since Tiger Woods to win a PGA Tour event prior to his 21st birthday.[54] The win earned him a two-year Tour exemption.[55] On 2 June, McIlroy played in the Memorial Skins Game at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.[56] McIlroy finished tied for 10th place at that same week's Memorial Tournament.[57]

On 15 July 2010, McIlroy confirmed his status as a favourite for the Open title on the Old Course at St Andrews by shooting a 9-under-par 63 on the opening day, the lowest-ever first round score in the 150-year history of the Open Championship, and tying the course record.[58] He missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the 17th, "The Road Hole", which would have given him the outright record.[59] His tied third finish in the 2010 Open Championship sent him to a career high world ranking of seventh.[60][61]

McIlroy missed out on a chance to win the 2010 PGA Championship when he three-putted the 15th green to fall out of a tie for the lead.[32] His final-hole birdie putt narrowly missed the hole to leave him one stroke out of the playoff between Bubba Watson and eventual winner Martin Kaymer. McIlroy finished tied for third.[32] On 4 October 2010, McIlroy won a crucial half-point to help Europe regain the Ryder Cup.[33] Following the Ryder Cup, he announced in November that he would return to play full-time on the European Tour, although he also stated that he would continue to play 11 or 12 tournaments in the US per year. He attributed the decision to having closer friends on the European Tour, his part in the Ryder Cup victory, and wanting to be nearer his girlfriend and family.[62]

McIlroy later stated that he regretted his 2010 decision to give up his PGA Tour card, and his skipping the 2010 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. McIlroy's manager Chubby Chandler's aversion to the PGA Tour was cited by McIlroy as one of the main reasons for their later professional split.[63]

2011[edit]

Masters[edit]

On 7 April, McIlroy shot a bogey-free 7-under-par 65 in the first round of the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia to take the lead after the first day of the four-day competition.[64] He is the youngest player to date to lead the Masters Tournament at the close of the first day.[65] On Friday, he shot 69 to lead by two strokes over Jason Day with a 10-under-par score. On Saturday, he shot 70 to finish at 12-under-par, four strokes ahead of four other challengers. However, on the fourth and final day, he shot the worst round in history by any professional golfer leading after the third round of the Masters Tournament.[66] McIlroy scored one-over-par 37 on the first nine, and still had the lead, but shot a round of 80, finishing T15 at 4-under for the tournament.[44]

In preparation for the U.S. Open, McIlroy practised at Pine Valley Golf Club in New Jersey, rather than at Congressional, but did play two practice rounds at Congressional about a week before the start of the Open, after returning from a two-day trip to Haiti as an ambassador for UNICEF.[71][72]

On 17 June during the second round, McIlroy became the first player in the history of the tournament to reach a score of 13-under-par at any point in the tournament. He achieved the feat by making birdie at the 17th hole in the second round. Despite a double bogey on the final hole, his two-day total of 131 (65-66, 11-under-par) set a record as the lowest 36-hole total in U.S. Open history.[73] The score was one better than Ricky Barnes' 132 in 2009. He was also the fastest golfer to reach double digits under par in the U.S. Open, reaching 10 under par in 26 holes.[74]

On 18 June, during the U.S. Open's third round, he became the first player to reach 14-under par at the tournament by making a birdie at the 15th hole, on his way to a 54-hole U.S. Open record of 199.[75] In doing so, he also built an eight-stroke lead going into the final round. A final round of 69 allowed him to claim his first major championship setting the 72-hole record.[76]

2012[edit]

McIlroy's first tournament of the year was at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship during the desert swing of the European Tour at the end of January. The tournament was in the spotlight due to its high profile field including Tiger Woods, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood. McIlroy played alongside Woods and Donald in the marquee group during the first two days. McIlroy shot rounds of 67-72-68 to start round 4 in joint 3rd place behind joint leaders Robert Rock and Tiger Woods. He shot a 3-under-par 69 on Sunday to finish lone second, one stroke behind winner Robert Rock.

McIlroy played the following week at the WGC-Cadillac Championship in Miami, Florida. His recent good form began to dwindle slightly on Thursday, when he shot a 1-over par 73. However, he shot 69 and 65 the next two days to begin the fourth round in tied 8th place. Going into the back 9 on Sunday, he had a chance of winning his second title of 2012 in as many weeks due to the leaders faltering. However two late bogeys halted his chance and he settled for 3rd place, two strokes behind winner Justin Rose.

McIlroy lost his number one ranking on 18 March to Luke Donald after Donald won the Transitions Championship. McIlroy was one stroke off of the lead going into the weekend at The Masters but struggled in his last two rounds and finished in a tie for 40th. He regained the top spot in the world rankings on 15 April but lost it to Donald again on 29 April. On 6 May, McIlroy was in contention at the Wells Fargo Championship and went to a playoff with Rickie Fowler and D. A. Points. Fowler won the tournament on the first playoff hole with a birdie. The runner-up finish put McIlroy back at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking.[84] After the runner-up finish, McIlroy would later miss the cut in his next three events, and fell again from number one ranking.

PGA Championship[edit]

McIlroy won the 2012 PGA Championship by a record eight strokes, which was done with a birdie on the final hole.[85][86][87] The record stood since Jack Nicklaus won the 1980 PGA Championship by seven strokes.[85][86][87] McIlroy started the final round with a three stroke lead and shot a bogey free 66 to run away from the field. With this win, McIlroy became the youngest multiple major champion since Seve Ballesteros won the 1980 Masters Tournament, and the sixth youngest of all time. The win also helped McIlroy regain the world number one ranking.

Pursuit of the FedEx Cup[edit]

McIlroy finished the regular season third in the FedEx Cup standings. At The Barclays, the first of four playoff events, he finished in a tie for 24th, dropping him to fourth in the standings. McIlroy won the following week at the Deutsche Bank Championship to take the top spot in the standings. McIlroy entered the final round three strokes behind Louis Oosthuizen and defeated him by one stroke.[88] The win also put McIlroy at the top of the PGA Tour money list. McIlroy's success continued the following week when he won the BMW Championship.[89] He was 40-under par for his two playoff tournament victories.[90] With the win, he became the first European to win four PGA Tour events in a single season and the only person other than Tiger Woods to win four events in a season since 2005.

Race to Dubai champion[edit]

Following Europe's victory in the Ryder Cup, McIlroy turned his attention to winning the Race to Dubai. A second place at the BMW Masters was followed by a third place at the Barclays Singapore Open to wrap up the title with two events remaining. To finish off his season, he won the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, making birdie on the last five holes to beat Justin Rose by two strokes.[91] He thus duplicated Luke Donald's 2011 feat of winning both the PGA Tour and European Tour money titles in the same year.

2013[edit]

McIlroy began 2013 with high aspirations, but mostly did not fare well in early tournaments. Struggling with the equipment change having signed a large endorsement deal with Nike in January, he withdrew from the Honda Classic in February, and finished in two over par and in a tie for 25th place at the 2013 Masters Tournament.[92] McIlroy won the 2013 Emirates Australian Open on the 72nd hole. He beat Australian Adam Scott by one stroke.[93]

2014[edit]

In March, McIlroy lost in a four-man sudden-death playoff at the Honda Classic on the PGA Tour, despite leading the tournament through all four rounds until the back nine on Sunday. He shot a final round 74 (+4) and had a superb second shot to the par-five 18th in regulation play to qualify for the playoff, after missing the eagle putt for the win. He lost on the first extra hole, when Russell Henley was the only one of the four to birdie the hole.

In May in England, McIlroy won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth by one stroke. He carded a six-under-par 66 final round to beat Thomas Bjørn, who started the day seven strokes clear of McIlroy. The win was McIlroy's first on either of the two major tours in 18 months.[94]

Rest of 2014[edit]

After a week off following his Open victory, McIlroy won his first World Golf Championship event at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone and returned to world number one.[97] Starting the final day three shots behind Sergio García, McIlroy shot a 66 to finish on 15 under par and two strokes clear. The following week, he won the PGA Championship at Valhalla for his fourth major, one shot ahead of runner-up Phil Mickelson.[97] After his victory Jack Nicklaus said: "Rory is an unbelievable talent. I think Rory has an opportunity to win 15 or 20 majors or whatever he wants to do if he wants to keep playing. I love his swing, I love his rhythm, I love his moxie. He's got a little swagger there, it’s a little bit cocky but not offensive."[98]

In 2014, McIlroy again swept the PGA Tour awards: Arnold Palmer Award (leading money winner), PGA Player of the Year, PGA Tour Player of the Year, Vardon Trophy, and Byron Nelson Award. He also won the Race to Dubai and was voted the European Tour Golfer of the Year. He again won the Mark H. McCormack Award for leading the Official World Golf Ranking for the most weeks in the year (22 of 52 weeks). He was awarded the RTE Sports Person of the year for the second time, previously winning in 2011, and the BBC Northern Ireland Sport Personality of the Year for the third time after victories in 2011 and 2012. He also came 2nd in the National BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, behind Formula 1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton.

Technique, additional mentors and coaches[edit]

McIlroy employs the interlocking grip on full shots. He has worked with various professional golfers since he was young, including Darren Clarke, Nick Faldo,[99] and Graeme McDowell. McDowell frequently plays practice rounds at Tour events with McIlroy.

McIlroy left ISM in 2011,[100] with McIlroy joining Dublin-based Horizon Sports Management.[101][102]Michael Bannon is expected to work full-time with McIlroy beginning in October 2012.[103]

Controversies[edit]

In May 2009, McIlroy described the Ryder Cup as an "exhibition". McIlroy said: "It's not a huge goal of mine. In the big scheme of things it's not that important an event for me. It's an exhibition at the end of the day."[104] McIlroy went on to say: "Golf is an individual sport. You have individual goals and my goals are to win tournaments for myself."[105] European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie responded by saying that the contest "is not an exhibition and it never will be. It's a very unique, special event."[104] The following year, in 2010, McIlroy said that he regretted his earlier comments and said that the Ryder Cup is "definitely not an exhibition".[106]

In May 2011, McIlroy was criticised for skipping The Players Championship. The skip was controversial because 48 of the top 50 in the world participated in it, the other golfer skipping being Lee Westwood.[107]

On 17 July 2011, following a poor showing over the weekend in the 2011 Open Championship, McIlroy told the media that he was "not a fan of golf tournaments that are predicted so much by the weather," and saying he would rather "wait for a year when the weather is nice" instead of tuning his game to prepare for the Open Championship. He also added that he would "rather play when it's 80 degrees and sunny and not much wind".[108]

On 28 July 2011, after being criticised on air by commentator Jay Townsend about McIlroy's questionable course management skills during the first round of the Irish Open, McIlroy wrote on Twitter telling Townsend to "shut up" and saying Townsend is a "failed golfer" and that "his opinion meant nothing". Later, McIlroy stood by his comments and stated that his comments were made in defence of his caddie J. P. Fitzgerald whom Townsend had been blaming for McIlroy's course management since 2008.[109]

In February 2013, McIlroy was criticised for withdrawing from the 2013 Honda Classic, citing tooth pain. Critics claimed that tooth pain was not the issue, and that McIlroy, the world number one at the time, was having difficulty adjusting to new equipment, and that he should have finished the tournament. Regarding his withdrawal, McIlroy stated, "this is one of my favourite tournaments of the year and I regret having to make the decision to withdraw, but it was one I had to make."[110]

In January 2014, McIlroy was hit with a two-shot penalty for not taking proper and full relief after driving onto a spectator pathway in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, his first event of the season. He was alerted to his mistake by Scottish caddie Dave Renwick after his round and, after signing for a 70 instead of a 68 to reflect the penalty, he told reporters: "There are many stupid rules in golf and this is one of them." The two-shot penalty ultimately cost him dearly, as he lost the tournament by a single shot.[111]

Personal life[edit]

McIlroy was raised Roman Catholic and has self-identified as Irish,[112] Northern Irish,[112] and British.[113][114] He carries a British passport,[115] although he usually is reluctant to discuss his nationality at length.[116][117] In 2012, he expressed an interest in representing Great Britain (as opposed to Ireland) in golf at the 2016 Olympic Summer Games, where golf will become an Olympic event for the first time since 1904. However in January 2013, McIlroy was considering the options of playing for Britain or Ireland or not playing at all, stating; "I just think being from where we're from, we're placed in a very difficult position. I feel Northern Irish and obviously being from Northern Ireland you have a connection to Ireland and a connection to the UK. If I could and there was a Northern Irish team I'd play for Northern Ireland. Play for one side or the other – or not play at all because I may upset too many people… Those are my three options I'm considering very carefully."[118] He declared on 18 June 2014 that he would play for Ireland, if he qualifies.[119]

McIlroy lived near the village of Moneyreagh in County Down, about 20 minutes from Belfast. The land around his home included a custom-made practice facility and a scaled-down football pitch.[120] In September 2012, the house was put up for sale for a price of £2 million.[121] In December 2012, McIlroy purchased a $10 million property in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, located close to Jack Nicklaus' The Bear's Club.[122][123]

McIlroy dated Danish tennis professional Caroline Wozniacki from 2011 to 2014.[128] He proposed on 31 December 2013 in Sydney, where she said yes.[129] On 21 May 2014, it was announced that McIlroy had ended the engagement: "The problem is mine. The wedding invitations issued at the weekend made me realise that I wasn't ready for all that marriage entails. I wish Caroline all the happiness she deserves and thank her for the great times we've had."[130] Wozniacki later revealed that McIlroy had ended the relationship through a brief phone call, and had not contacted her since.[131][132]

McIlroy is a fan of Premier League football team Manchester United.[133] In his acceptance speech following his 2014 Open Championship win at Royal Liverpool, McIlroy addressed the crowd by joking; "Even though I'm a Man United fan standing here," which saw him booed in jest by arch rival Liverpool fans, before he thanked them for their great support.[134]

Having signed a lucrative endorsement deal with American sportswear company Nike in 2013, McIlroy filmed a Nike commercial with Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney.[135] In 2013, SportsPro ranked McIlroy the third most marketable athlete in the world behind football stars Neymar and Lionel Messi.[7]